Questions & Answers

Questions Often Asked of a Bail Bond Company

We are providing answers to the questions most frequently asked of a bail bond company. For additional bail bond information and answers to your specific questions about Downey bail bonds, please call me Toll-free at 1-800-944-1599.

What happens when a person is arrested?
What is the procedure for bailing someone out of jail?
What is the cost for Downey bail bonds?
What is collateral and will I need it for my bail bond?
What is my responsibilty when bailing someone out of jail?
What if the person I bail out of jail “skips” town?
Should I bail out my son or daughter?

Questions Often Asked of a Bail Bond Company

When an individual is arrested for a crime, the detainee will be taken to a local law enforcement station for booking. After being booked, the arrestee may be eligible for bail or they may stay in jail until their arraignment.

The Arrest and Booking Process
Options for Jail Release
What happens when the person is Not Bailed Out?

Procedure for Bailing Someone Out of Jail

Arranging Downey bail bonds with my company is a very simple procedure.

Do Not Panic – I know this is a stressful situation and I deal with it every day.
Call my bail bond company immediately:
1-800-944-1599. I will answer all of your questions and provide you with complete information. The sooner we start the process, the sooner your friend or relative can be released from jail.
Simple bail bond documents can be emailed or faxed to you within minutes. Or, an agent can meet you in person if you are more comfortable.
You will fill out documents and return them to me and arrange payment. The documents take most of my customers less than 10 minutes to complete. You can return them to my Toll-free fax. You may pay for your bail bond with any major credit card or payment arrangements can be made.
Local bondsman posts the bond with jail.
Defendant is released.

For further bail bond information please see the following web pages:

Bail Bond Cost

A Downey bail bond fee will cost you 10% of the total amount of bail. As an example, if your bail amount is $20,000; you will be charged $2,000 from the bail bond company. This amount is non-refundable. Bail bond companies are regulated by the Downey Department of Insurance. Bail bond fees are established with the DOI so you should be paying the same amount with any Downey bondsman. There may be unusual circumstances where extra charges are applied but these charges should all be clearly stated by the bail bond company.

Bail Without Collateral

We are able to write most bail bonds with no collateral. I will ask questions to determine the risk involved with the and try to do the bail bond without collateral. I will want to know information about the defendant as well as the indemnitor (person guaranteeing and signing the bond) for example: How long have they been at their current job? How long have they been a part of the community? What type of crime was it?

We understand that your background may not be perfect. We are looking to make sure that those involved in the bond are able to appear in court and have the means to pay if the defendant unexpectedly “skips bail” and is unable to be located.

Collateral is sometimes required by a bail bond company to help ensure that the defendant will appear in court. If for some reason the defendant does not show up for court and cannot be located, the bail bond company will use the collateral to pay a “forfeiture” of the full bail amount. With Downey Bail Bonds, collateral may be in the form of Downey real estate or cash deposit.

If you secure a bail bond with collateral, it will be returned at the end of the case.

Indemnitor Responsibilities

When you bail somebody out of jail, you sign a legally binding bail bond contract and are the “indemnitor”. You take full responsibility that the individual shows up in court. If the person you bail out fails to appear in court, you will be held responsible to help the bail bond company find the defendant and return them to court. If the defendant can not be located, you will be responsible for the full amount of bail. Keep in mind that the vast majority of bail bond issues can be easily resolved. They rarely escalate beyond a phone call to straighten out the situation.

Failure to Appear

If a defendant misses a court appearance, we will call both the bail bond signer and the defendant. If there was a misunderstanding on the date, or the defendant was sick, stuck in traffic, etc., the bond company will make arrangements with the court for a new date. This happens often and there is an easy fix.

If you have used my bail company and this has happened to you, please call Downey Bail Bonds now, so this can be addressed immediately.

A warrant for arrest may be issued if a defendant fails to appear in front of the judge. This is called a “forfeiture”. Usually, a missed court appearance is a simple mistake and can be corrected with a few phone calls. If, however, the defendant is trying to avoid prosecution, the bondsman must locate and return the defendant. In Downey, a bail bond company has 6 months to get the defendant back into court. If the bondsman is unable to locate the defendant and bring them back into custody, then they may use a bail recovery person.

When bailing someone out of jail, the two most important points about “Bail Skips” are